Solid state starters/controllers have found widespread use for controlling application of power to an AC induction motor. The conventional starter/controller, referred to hereinafter as simply a controller, uses solid state switches for controlling application of AC line voltage to the motor. The switches may be thyristors such as silicon controlled rectifiers (SCRs) or triacs.
Conventional controllers include a housing enclosing the solid state switches and a control circuit for controlling operation of the solid state switches. For configuring controller operation the motor controller may include digital selectors switches or the like for setting functions and ranges. Indicator lights, such as LEDs, may be used for status indication.
With such a conventional controller there are a limited number of parameters that are user adjustable. For example, the user could select starting current limit, overload current, line rotation and enable or disable the use of off delay. However, adjustment of any of these parameters was limited. For example, with starting current limit, the user could select from among a plurality of discrete values within a range. This enabled the user to make course adjustment to a value such as starting current limit. However, if the user desired to select a different value then one of the preselect discrete values in the range, or if the user wanted to modify other configuration parameters, then custom software or circuitry must be used to satisfy these desires.
The present invention is directed to improvements in configuring motor controllers.